US soy sector slams "devastating" impact as $1.7bn wiped out

They called it devastating, damaging and spoke of a 70% collapse in US soy exports – at every level the US soybean industry has responded to China’s 25% tax on soybean exports with a chorus of dismay.

For some, the impact the tax could wreak on the US soy industry is too great to justify after futures fell near 5% in minutes and a report commissioned by the US Soybean Export Council said US exports to China could fall by 70%.

The industry has since urged President Trump to capitulate in the trade war before any real and lasting damage is done.

"We call on President Trump to engage the Chinese in a constructive manner – not a punitive one," John Heisdorffer, president of the American Soybean Association (ASA), said in a statement that described the levy as "devastating".

"At a projected 2018 crop of 4.3 billion bushels (117 million mt), soybean farmers lost $1.72 billion in value for our crop this morning alone," he added.

US Senator John Thune of South Dakota also highlighted his concerns in a statement provided to Agricensus.

"Every third row of soybeans in our state is exported, so this would no doubt have a damaging impact on the agriculture economy," he said, pledging to keep pressure on the administration.

At a state level, concerns have been voiced by some of the country’s biggest soybean-producing states, with the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) saying Chinese tariffs would have a "significantly negative impact" as Chinese exports raise $1.75 billion for the state’s coffers.

"It has a cumulative effect. No doubt about it," Grant Kimberley of the ISA told National Public Radio.

Trump gamble

Some strident language was also reserved for one of the president’s flagship campaign promises – tackling the US trade imbalance with China.

"We have been warning the administration and members of Congress that this would happen since the prospect for tariffs was raised," Heisdorffer of the ASA said, describing "regret" at the administration’s inability to counter concerns around intellectual property and technology without recourse to tariffs.

He also called on the administration to accept an offer made on March 12 to meet with President Trump to discuss the issue – an offer that so far has seen no response from the White House.

"This is no longer a hypothetical… that’s real money lost for farmers, and it is entirely preventable," Heisdorffer warned.